US Tottenham superfan jets in for four matches in 48 hours

Friday night – Loftus Road, Saturday lunchtime – Plough Lane, Saturday evening – Selhurst Park, Sunday afternoon – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Four venues, three leagues, more than six hours of football, almost 67,000 steps and all in less than 48 hours.

That was American superfan Andrew Smith’s itinerary fresh off the back of a 10-and-a-half-hour, 5,500-mile flight from San Diego into London Heathrow on Friday.

Taking the love of the game and pushing it right to the limit.

“Some people might wonder why I would spend my time doing this, but to me as a cultural voyeur and at times interloper in the community, it’s very interesting and different to what we have in America,” he said.

“In terms of the game itself, the quality is so much higher over here and the understanding of the fanbases is much more developed. The differences between the tiers is very interesting and the differences between the grounds – fantastic.

“To my eyes it’s like travelling to see a natural or historic site, it’s a cultural phenomenon I appreciate.”